Gardening for Hope

GreenWorks has been honored to help orchestrate the transformation of the rooftop planters on the Multnomah County Green Roof into a 'Hope Garden' ... From Multnomah County website:

"Multnomah County and the City of Portland are partnering to plant organic vegetable gardens at their respective headquarters to recognize the growing community interest in local food systems and to inspire residents to plant their own edible gardens.  “Growing food is a great way for a family to reduce food costs, spend time together, and to assist hungry families,” said Multnomah County Commissioner Judy Shiprack.   “Multnomah County recognizes that our local food system has a significant impact on the economy, health, and environment of our community,” said Multnomah County Commissioner Jeff Cogen. “And this demonstration project fits one of the county’s core missions to promote healthy people and healthy communities.”

 

Volunteers from a number of organizations and firms contributed their time and effort into making the garden a reality.  A list of donations includes:

:: GreenWorks Landscape Architects www.greenworkspc.com :: Teufel Landscape www.teufel.com :: Tremco Roofing www.tremcoroofing.com :: Anderson Roofing www.andersonroofing.net :: Phillips Soil Products www.phillipssoil.com :: HD Fowler www.hdfowler.com :: Oregon Wire www.oregonwireproducts.com :: Territorial Seeds www.territorialseed.com :: Plant Health www.planthealthllc.com :: Portland Nursery www.portlandnursery.com :: Parr Lumber www.parr.com  

Food will be cared for by the Multnomah County Green Team, and donated to local food banks via the Share your Harvest program.  The roof is publically accessible at 501 SE Hawthorne, and open during regular business hours.  Plus the view of downtown is stunning.

Gresham CFTA Plaza Opens Tomorrow

Updated pics of the GCFTA Plaza with plantings... as the grand opening gets near.

Just a reminder about the Grand-opening festivities for the Gresham Center for the Arts Plaza, to be held tomorrow on Saturday at 12:30 p.m., followed by musical performances and family-fun activities from 1 to 8:30 p.m.

For more information on the project, visit http://www.gcfta.org/.

Plaza Celebration - Gresham Outlook

Arts enthusiasts ready for plaza celebration

By Mara Stine

The Gresham Outlook, Jun 3, 2009

"Local patrons of the arts will be kicking up their heels this weekend in celebration of the city’s new Center for the Arts Plaza.

A grand opening for the plaza, located between Northeast Second and Third streets and Hood and Kelly avenues, starts at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, June 6. Free musical performances and family activities are scheduled throughout the day and into the evening.

For a complete line up and history of the plaza, see the special section dedicated to the project inserted in this issue of The Outlook.

Funded through a partnership between the Center for the Arts Foundation and Gresham, the $2.3 million plaza is designed to showcase local performers and provide East County residents a central gathering space.

“The plaza is a unique opportunity for our citizens and visitors to not only enjoy art and cultural events, but also have community gatherings and picnics while enjoying this beautiful outdoor ‘living room’ in the heart of Gresham,” said Gresham City Councilor Carol Nielsen-Hood.

The Center for the Arts Plaza is on a 2-acre parcel donated to the city by the Fourier-Larson family. It’s centrally located in historic downtown Gresham, just a few blocks east of Main Avenue.

A privately funded Center for the Arts also is planned for the site. The Center for the Arts Foundation is still raising money for the project.

Plaza events will be scheduled year round, and the space is available for private event rental such as weddings."

Gresham Center for the Arts Plaza

Construction is finishing up on the Gresham Center for the Arts Plaza, and the dedication ceremony has been scheduled for Saturday, June 6th... Here's the text from a recent DJC article, as well as some recent construction pics. Hope to see you there.

:: images copyright GreenWorks PC

Grand Opening Planned for Gresham's Living Room

From the DJC - June 2, 2009

Gresham’s “living room” is one step closer to completion: Konell Construction has completed work on the first phase of the city’s new Center for the Arts Plaza.

The plaza, built on a two-acre parcel of land at Second and Third streets between Northeast Hood and Kelly avenues, is intended to accommodate local performers and also serve as an ‘outdoor living room’ similar to Portland’s Pioneer Courthouse Square. Designed by GreenWorks PC, the plaza features four art pillars that symbolize fine arts, literature, performing arts and music.

Construction of the $2.3 million plaza began in August 2008. Future phases of the project will include construction of a two-story, 37,400-square-foot performance and events facility and a three-balcony proscenium theater, which will be built bordering the plaza.

Grand-opening festivities for the plaza will be held on Saturday at 12:30 p.m., followed by musical performances and family-fun activities from 1 to 8:30 p.m. For more information on the project, visit http://www.gcfta.org/.

Denver Avenue Streetscape Approved

Latest News on the Denver Avenue Streetscape Project in Portland's Kenton Neighborhood. Project team includes GreenWorks and SERA Architects. Text from the Oregon Daily Journal of Commerce (DJC), April 27, 2009 by Tyler Graf...

Spruced-up streets planned for Kenton Neighborhood

The city says 42 construction jobs will be created as part of the Denver Streetscape Project inside the Kenton Neighborhood. Thanks to an ordinance passed last week at City Council, the $2 million project will move forward this summer. The project will feature the installation of trees, sidewalk improvements, curb extensions, storm water planters, art, ornamental streetlights and pedestrian crossings and will cover North Denver Avenue from North Interstate Avenue to North Watts.

According to the Portland Developent Commission, design and engineering will be completed this spring. The project will be put out to bid shortly with the bid opening anticipated for May. Contracts will be awarded in June, with construction expected to finish by the end of the year.

Gresham Plaza Lighting Test

Check out this video taken of the test of illuminated paving bands for the Gresham Center for the Arts Plaza... [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTfTIIbYYt8]

First and Main building tops off

DJC Oregon - Monday, March 2, 2009  (By Tyler Graf)

"A year before the First and Main building – located at the western base of the Hawthorne Bridge – is scheduled to open its doors, its developers at San Francisco-based Shorenstein Company still don’t have an anchor tenant for their 365,000-square-foot building.  But with the shell of the building constructed, and 13 of the 16 floors safe for prospective tenants to look at, project managers such as Matt Cole are taking strides to boost marketing efforts.  “We’re hopeful to announce anchor tenants soon,” said Cole, a senior vice president of Shorenstein. “It’s so hard to predict what will happen with the economy though.”

That’s a common refrain among brokers, said Ryan Pennington, a Colliers International broker unassociated with the project.  “I wouldn’t be surprised if they had something signed really soon,” Pennington said. The building had its “topping off” ceremony late last week and marked the occasion with a mass tour for brokers. There’s no “common denominator” used in attempting to attract an anchor tenant, Cole said; however, Shorenstein and its brokers continue to sell the building as the “first new office building in the Central Business District since the Fox Tower.”   Construction of Fox Tower completed in 2000.

Its status as a “first” may be appealing, but First and Main could nonetheless find itself playing catch-up to Park Avenue West, the office tower scheduled to open immediately following First and Main. That building has already secured law firm Stoel Rives to anchor it.  “I don’t see that being a disadvantage, though,” Pennington said. “For most projects in this market, securing anchor tenants has been really difficult.”  In the next 12 to 36 months, he said, there will be a lot of bigger office tenants looking for space.

Todd Sklar, development director for Shorenstein, said he expects the building to become more attractive to tenants as it takes shape, one glass panel at a time.  “Our building may have more color than some,” Sklar said, adding that as the building adds new details, such as the expanse of glass that will cover the face of the building, brokers will have an easier time envisioning its final look.  “We have a big focus on natural light,” he added.

Construction on the building has stuck to its time schedule in spite of setbacks, according to Hoffman Construction supervisors. Work halted for two weeks in December, when Portland was pummeled by snow and ice. The setback to construction came as a surprise – a costly one – but Hoffman was “able to recover the lost time,” Cole said.

Though still gutted, with puddles of water pooling on the slab concrete ground, the building’s interior brings promises of sustainable features. The lobby will feature floors made of travertine, a type of sedimentary rock used in both ancient and modern architecture. Its walls will be lined with solid fir paneling to accentuate the floor-to-ceiling windows, said Krista Bailey, a development manager for Shorenstein. For looks and practicality, the lobby will also feature a gas fireplace, Bailey said, along with art displays and Venetian plaster – a finishing technique in which plaster is applied to walls with a trowel to create a three-dimensional texture.

The fourth floor will feature an eco-roof, which will be accessible to all building tenants. Currently, it’s just a concrete roof awaiting various plants, walkways and benches. Eventually, it will be a plush, garden-like environment, Bailey said.

It’ll grow, she said, like the building."

Beavercreek Sustainability

Construction was completed last fall on the Beavercreek Road Green Street project, which was also recipient of an honorable mention for Project of the Year from the Oregon APWA.   The Beavercreek Road Improvements Project was a $4.2 million project undertaken by the City of Oregon City to upgrade 2500 feet of a heavily traveled regional arterial. Beavercreek Road is the primary link between Highway 213 and the City's main north-south arterial, Molalla Avenue. The project, a major component in the City’s Transportation System Plan, expanded the existing three-lane roadway to five lanes with bike lanes and sidewalks on each side. It also incorporated green street design elements for stormwater collection, reduction, and treatment. The project’s design and construction engineering was completed by Wallis Engineering, along with GreenWorks for landscape architecture with construction completed by Dirt and Aggregate Interchange, Inc. and landscape construction from Fox Erosion Control.

Check out the project in more detail in this video:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Z-75pERCu0]

Windscape Video

Construction was recently completed on the GreenWorks project 'Windscape', which  "...forms a dramatic landmark in the Gateway District of Northeast Portland; an art installation at an undevelopable site dominated by vehicle traffic.  A constructed topography built from the concrete rubble of a major streetscape redevelopment project recalls the rugged slopes and bluffs of the Columbia River Gorge. Bisecting the landform are rows of flexible windpoles, 20 feet tall and laid out in the cardinal directions. The north-south double row symbolizes adjacent 102nd Avenue as it cuts through the landform. The east-west row of poles represents East Burnside Street, as it was the baseline upon which the city of Portland was laid out." The recent installation of the wind poles gave the opportunity, with this past weekends high-velocity east winds, to see how the project was working in action. Landscape Architect Shawn Kummer, who was the GreenWorks designer for the project, shot the following video:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2eREj0lxxw]

"Motion is the key theme of the piece. The windpoles flex, dependent upon the amount and direction of the wind. As a person drives the loop, the view of the piece is in constant movement, as the rows of poles align and then diverge, and the overlapping topographic features rotate, also appearing to move. Stormwater from adjacent roadways will be captured and directed into an infiltration basin on the site which will filter out stormwater contaminants, while also functioning as an aesthetic element that the recycled concrete walls meander through. Douglas fir trees form a contextual backdrop to the piece, creating windows through which to view Windscape and the adjacent development."

Gresham plaza artist to talk about public art

From the Daily Journal of Commerce - 01.13.09 The artist chosen to create art elements for Gresham’s Center for the Arts Plaza will be at the 4th Street Brewing Company on Jan. 28 to discuss her work in public art. Claudia Fitch was awarded $175,000 to create art to mark the Third Street entrance to the GreenWorks PC designed-plaza, which will act as a “living room” for the city. Fitch has designed a variety of public art projects, including art for Qwest Field in Seattle. At the presentation, she will discuss her previous work and her strategy for approaching public art projects. Her artwork for the plaza is expected to be completed and unveiled in August.

Fitch’s commission was donated by Dwight Unti, Sue O’Halloran, Mike McKeel, Steve Thoren, John Kilian and the Gresham Art Advisory Committee in memory of Walter C. Calvert. The presentation will be held at 77 N.E. Fourth St., in Gresham, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. The $1.5 million Center for the Arts Plaza will be a freestanding town square at the center of Gresham’s historic downtown. The project design includes decorative pavers, in-ground LED lighting and a public fountain, as well as a performance and events facility. Project construction began in fall 2008 by Konell Construction, which plans to finish the plaza early this year.